National statistics

Why do people come to the UK? For family reasons

Updated 27 November 2020

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Data relate to the year ending September 2020 and all comparisons are with the year ending September 2019, unless indicated otherwise.

On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak a global pandemic. A range of restrictions relating to the outbreak began on 12 March 2020, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) advised against all non-essential overseas travel on 17 March 2020, and advised all British travellers to return to the UK on 23 March 2020, the same day as the first UK lockdown measures were announced.

Restrictions were put in place across Europe and other parts of the world in the run up to the UK outbreak, which will also have impacted travel to the UK prior to these dates. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the UK immigration system, both in terms of restricting migrant movements to and from the UK and the impact on operational capacity.

Year ending comparisons that follow will reflect the restrictions in place during this period of the pandemic.

This section contains data on:

• Family-related Entry clearance visas
• Dependants on other types of visas (excluding Visitor visas)
• European Economic Area (EEA) Family permits
• EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) Family permits

1. Immigration for family reasons

There were 147,448 visas and permits granted for family reasons in the year ending September 2020, 18% fewer than the year ending September 2019. A fall in grants was seen in April to June 2020 (90% lower than in the same period in 2019) due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. This fall in grants of visas and permits continued, but was much less profound, in the period from July to September 2020, being only 13% lower than the same period in 2019. The year ending June 2020 total included:

• 42,807 family-related visas, 18% lower than the previous year (52,043), driven by a 19% decrease in grants to both partners and children, down by 7,435 and 1,438 respectively
• 63,913 dependants of people coming to the UK on other types of visas (excluding Visitor visas), down 17%; there was a particularly large drop in grants to dependants of Tier 2 Intra-Company Transfer migrants (down 53% to 11,620)
• 23,416 EEA Family permits, down 50%
• 17,312 EUSS family permits issued to non-EEA close family members of those granted settled or pre-settled status through the EU Settlement Scheme

Table 1: Family visas and permits granted, by visa type

Visa type	Year ending September 2019	Year ending September 2020	Change	Percentage change
Family-related visas	52,043	42,807	-9,236	-18%
of which:
Partners	38,264	30,829	-7,435	-19%
Children1	7,045	5,697	-1,348	-19%
Other dependants	6,734	6,281	-453	-7%
Dependants on other visas2	77,313	63,913	-13,400	-17%
Total family visas	129,356	106,720	-22,636	-17%
EEA Family permits	46,737	23,416	-23,321	-50%
EU Settlement Scheme family permits3,4	2,645	17,312	+14,667	+555%
Total family permits	49,382	40,728	-8,654	-18%

Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02
Notes:

1. From December 2017, data on ‘Family-related visas granted’ to children include children of a parent given limited leave to enter or remain in the UK for a probationary period. These were previously included as ‘Dependants on other visas (excl. Visitor visas)’. The increase in grants to children in the year ending September 2019 reflects this change.
2. Excludes dependants of those on Visitor visas.
3. The EU Settlement Scheme family permit is an entry clearance route that launched on 30 March 2019. It is not an application to the EU Settlement Scheme. A successful applicant can, if they wish, make a further application to the EU Settlement Scheme once in the UK.
4. Year ending comparisons for EUSS family permit grants are incomplete at this stage, as the permit scheme only launched on 30 March 2019. The first complete year ending comparison will be in 2021 Quarter 2.

Figure 1: Family-related visas and permits granted, by visa type, years ending September 2011 to September 2020

Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02
Notes:

1. Includes dependants of those coming on other visa categories (such as work and study) but excludes dependants of those on Visitor visas.
2. From 29 November 2010, all non-EEA nationals applying to enter or extend their stay as a partner of a British citizen, or settled person, were required to demonstrate a level of English, except in certain circumstances. This change coincided with a fall in family-related visas granted.
3. Several changes to the Immigration Rules came into effect on 9 July 2012. Further details on the rule changes can be found in the user guide and in the additional analysis provided in ‘Immigration statistics, July to September 2014’.
4. The EU Settlement Scheme family permit is an entry clearance route that launched on 30 March 2019. It is not an application to the EU Settlement Scheme. A successful applicant can, if they wish, make a further application to the EU Settlement Scheme once in the UK.

1.1 Family-related visas by nationality

Pakistani nationals were granted the highest number of family-related visas in the year ending September 2020, accounting for just under one sixth (16%) of the total. In the same time period, the top five nationalities together accounted for more than one third (37%) of all family-related visas granted.

Table 2: Top five nationalities granted family-related visas in the year ending September 2020

Nationality	Year ending September 2019	Year ending September 2020	Change	Percentage change
Pakistan	9,250	6,662	-2,588	-28%
India	4,126	3,348	-778	-19%
Bangladesh	2,559	2,155	-404	-16%
United States	2,604	1,950	-654	-25%
Nepal	2,009	1,605	-404	-20%
All other nationalities	31,495	27,087	-4,408	-14%
Total	52,043	42,807	-9,236	-18%

Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02

There was a fall in grants for most nationalities as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. There were particular falls for the top three nationalities: Pakistan (down 2,588 or 28%), India (down 778 or 19%), and the United States (down 654 or 25%).

A few nationalities saw a rise in grants in the year ending September 2020, most notably Sudan (up 384 or 39%). Despite a significant fall in the period April to June 2020, resulting in no grants for this period compared to the 170 family-related visas granted the previous year, the large increase in grants in the rest of the year (up 500, or 50%) resulted in an overall increase in grants compared to the year ending September 2019.

1.2 Dependants on other visas (excluding visitors)

In addition to family-related visas, other dependants can be granted visas to join or accompany migrants with visas for other purposes, such as work and study.

In the year ending September 2020, there were 63,913 visas granted to dependants on other visas, 17% lower than the previous year. This decrease was largely due to a fall of 12,765 grants to dependants of those on tier 2 (skilled) work visas.

Table 3: Visas granted to dependants on other visas

Visa category	Year ending September 2019	Year ending September 2020	Change	Percentage change
Tier 4 (Sponsored study)	14,839	15,065	+226	+2%
Tier 2 (Skilled)	48,669	35,904	-12,765	-26%
Other work visas	5,665	3,902	-1,763	-31%
Other visas1	8,140	9,042	+902	+11%
Total	77,313	63,913	-13,400	-17%

Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes: Vis_D02
Notes:

1. Not all visas have a dedicated dependant visa, dependants on those routes are instead granted a general joining or accompanying visa which are contained in this category

The increase in dependants of students was driven by Indian nationals almost trebling in the year ending September 2020 (from 2,127 to 6,057).

The fall in visas granted to dependants of migrants on work visas reflects the overall fall in those routes – for more information, see the Why do people come to the UK? To work section.

1.3 Family permits

EU Settlement Scheme and EEA family permits allow non-EEA close family members of EEA and Swiss nationals to live in the UK. The migrant joining should apply for an EU Settlement Scheme family permit if the family member they are joining has settled or pre-settled status under the scheme, otherwise they should apply for an EEA family permit.

There were 40,728 family permits granted in the year ending September 2020, 18% fewer than the previous year. From July to September 2020, there were 11,955 family permits granted, 11% lower than the same period a year earlier.

There were 23,416 EEA family permits granted, a decrease of 50%, following a recent downward trend since the third quarter of 2019. In the third quarter of 2020, there were 5,232 EEA family permits granted, 54% lower than the same period a year earlier.

There were 17,312 EUSS family permits granted in the year ending June 2020. As the route started at the end of March 2019, not enough time has elapsed for a meaningful comparison to be made to the previous year.

1.4 The effects of COVID-19 on the UK immigration system (family)

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all visa application centres were closed by 31 March 2020. They began gradually reopening from June 2020. As a result, visa application and grant numbers were much lower than usual in the second quarter of 2020 (April to June), but have significantly recovered in the third quarter (July to September).

In the second quarter of 2020 there was a sharp decline in visas granted to dependants on other visas compared to the previous year (down 18,360 or 94%). In comparison, in the third quarter of 2020 there was a more moderate decline in visas granted (down 2,750 or 11%).

The number of applications for family visas and permits in the third quarter of 2020 was 20% lower than a year earlier, decreasing by 13,520 to 55,479 total applications. In the same period, the number of family visas granted fell by 13%, decreasing by 6,809 to 46,856 total grants. The number of applications and grants were particularly low in the months of April and May (12 and 843, respectively), at the height of the pandemic response.

Figure 2: Number of family visas granted, by month, January to September 2019 and 2020

Source: Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes – Vis_D02 and underlying data

2. About these statistics

The statistics in this section provide an indication of the number of people who had an intention to enter the UK for family reasons.

Entry clearance visas allow an individual to enter and stay in the UK within the period for which the visa is valid. EEA nationals do not require a visa to enter the UK.

Data in this section refer to the number of Entry clearance visas granted for family reasons (including those issued to dependants of those travelling on other types of visas, excluding Visitor visas), EEA Family permits and EU Settlement Scheme family permits granted, within the period. If an individual was granted a visa more than once in a given period, this has been counted as multiple grants in the statistics. If an individual entered the UK multiple times within the period for which a visa was valid, this has been counted as one grant in the visa statistics.

The data do not show whether, or when, an individual arrived in the UK, what they did on arrival to the UK, or how long they stayed in the UK.

Year-on-year comparisons of the number of decisions can be affected by quarterly fluctuations in the data. These fluctuations can be examined in the quarterly data in the published tables.

Additional analysis on Family visas was included in the ‘Immigration statistics, July to September 2014’ release to assist users in understanding the trends in family data before and after the changes to the Immigration Rules in July 2012 (updated in the ‘Immigration statistics, April to June 2015’ release).

For figures on family-related grants of settlement as well as residence documentation issued to EEA nationals and their family members, see ‘How many people continue their stay in the UK?’. Data on the Family reunion visa category can be found in the ‘How many people do we grant asylum or protection to?’ section.

The EU Settlement Scheme family permit operates alongside the EEA family permit, which continues to provide a separate entry clearance route for those who qualify for it. The EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) family permit facilitates entry into the UK of an eligible non-EEA citizen family member in order to join, or accompany, an EEA or Swiss citizen who has been granted settled status or pre-settled status under the EUSS. This is separate entry clearance route from those applying directly to the EU Settlement Scheme. EU Settlement Scheme statistics are published by the Home Office on a monthly basis. More detailed breakdowns are provided on a quarterly basis.

2.1 Other sources

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes long-term international migration (LTIM) estimates in its ‘Migration to and from the UK report’. Additional migration publications may be found in the ‘Other migration outputs in this release’ section.

3. Data tables

Data on family immigration can be found in the following tables:

• Entry clearance visa summary tables
• Detailed Entry clearance visa datasets
• Admissions tables
• Extensions summary tables
• Detailed Extensions datasets

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